Friday, June 14, 2019

Zombies, two Emma Thompson films and Dad's Day greetings from 'Shaft'

Four paragraphs on an equal number of less-than-stellar movies:

Murray, Sevigny and Driver deal with the "Dead."
In 2013, Akron-area homeboy Jim Jarmusch co-wrote and directed one of the all-time best (and severely underrated) vampire flicks, "Only Lovers Left Alive." Alas, his latest, "The Dead Don't Die," likely won't reach the same stature for fans of zombies, but it's still the most tantalizing of this weekend's debuting quartet. With plenty of droll humor from a sparkling cast -- including Bill Murray, as a small town sheriff, and his drowsy deputies (Adam Driver and Chloe Sevigny) -- there's a lot to laugh at and respect, especially its outright homages to George A. Romeo and his original "Night of the Living Dead." If only Jarmusch's lazy ending wasn't a legitimate wall-breaker, people might talk about his movie as much as they will listen to its same-name title theme. The potential "Best Original Song" nominee comes from the country cat called Sturgill Simpson.

Rated "R": zombie violence/gore, and language; 1:43; $ $ $ out of $5

Two Shafts, Usher and Jackson, try to solve some crimes.
Speaking of original films and awards-caliber music, occasional snippets of Isaac Hayes' Oscar-winning funk classic might be the best thing about the latest rendition of "Shaft," a lowdown, very dirty fifth incarnation, featuring "the bad mutha . . . shut your mouth!" Hey, just talkin' 'bout Samuel L. Jackson, back playing tough and politically incorrect P.I John Shaft for the second time in 19 years. This go-round has his grown-up son (Jessie T. Usher) in tow as an MIT-educated FBI analyst who gives and gets from the ol' man throughout an extremely convoluted drugs, sex and violence caper. The plot becomes woefully less entertaining than the rat-a-tat-tat 'tude offered up by both the consistently cool Jackson and the gifted Regina Hall, as the baby mama Shaft reluctantly left behind. Believe me, you won't remember anything else.

Rated "R": pervasive language, violence, sexual content, some drug material and brief nudity; 1:51; $ $ and 1/2 out of $5

E. Thompson talks, but is anyone listening (or watching)?
The week's most balanced attempt at reason comes in "Late Night," the first of two Emma Thompson comedies (kinda) gracing local screens this weekend. Here, the grande dame plays a TV talk-show host whose nightly venture gets canceled after 28 years. (Yeah, right, it took 'em three decades to discover she's boring?) Enter a chemical-plant manager, believe it or not, who gets hired as a new writer and then shows the existing male staff how it should be done, or something like that. Obviously, the smart Mindy Kaling, charming as the newbie and with her first screenwriting credit in hand after an assortment of  television-script successes, mostly knows of what she speaks. However, much of it plays like a joke book opened for both coasts and nowhere else. For example, an impromptu Thompson stand-up routine had her L.A. movie audience rolling on the floor. Meanwhile, only a giggle or two found air when a packed house watched the scene during a West Side Cleveland theater screening. Folks, it's just not that funny, and a good supporting cast suffers as a result, too. That includes John Lithgow, a superb Amy Ryan, Hugh Dancy and Ike Barinholz.

Rated "R": language throughout and some sexual references; 1:42; $ $ and 1/2 out of $5

Hemsworth and T. Thompson look cool.
Emma Thompson's other appearance today amounts to an early cameo in the never-ending "Men in Black: International," in which she returns to her role of the fashion-savvy Agent O from 2012's "Men in Black III." The franchise's latest title comes from alien-chasing visits to Paris, London, Marrakesh and Naples, but it remains a mess wherever it lands. Naturally it begins in New York, where a brilliant young sci-fi addict (the usually more reliable Tessa Thompson) tricks her way into MIB's secluded headquarters -- and voila! -- is partnering up with another world-wide agency hotshot (the ever-strutting Chris Hemsworth) a few scenes later. Now, fans of these kinds of films know that Tessa and Chris formed a dynamic, charismatic bond in the infinitely funnier Marvel adventure, "Thor Ragnarok." Here, with so few clever words to hang onto, they get lost in a sea of disappointingly dull creatures, that is, unless we count the magnificent toupee that Liam Neeson wears as Agent High T. He's the British Bureau Chief. Get it? Ha-ha!

Rated "PG-13": sci-fi action, some language and suggestive material; 1:55; $ and 1/2 out $5

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